PORT ANGELES — Seven local heroes will be honored with the Clallam County Community Service Award for 2008 on Thursday.
The recipients are:
Harold Baar, 83, of Joyce who recently retired after 53 years of volunteer work with Clallam County Fire District 4, which he helped found.
He also served decades on the boards of many Joyce-area organizations.
Jacqueline Russell of Port Angeles. After the heartbreaking death of her 17-year-old son, she was instrumental in the formation of the North Olympic Peninsula chapter of The Compassionate Friends, which offers support in the Port Angeles, Sequim and Forks areas to grieving parents who have lost a child.
She remains very active with the group, helping bereaved families in many ways.
Colleen Robinson of Sequim, whose volunteer efforts stretch from providing winter boots for children of the Hoh tribe to raising awareness about the dangers of methamphetamines to preparing a sit-down dinner for 300 for a fundraiser.
Virginia and Welden Clark of Sequim, dedicated volunteers who have aided Clallam County agencies at multiple levels with their talents and expertise.
The husband and wife are leaders in the protection of the county’s water supplies.
Doc Reiss, a leader of the annual Arts in Action summer street festival in Port Angeles, creator of an international sand sculpture contest that is part of the festival and a driving force behind the creation of the Port Angeles skateboard park and maintenance of the downtown murals.
Barbara Ann Townsend, “grandmother” to more than 100 children she has helped over the years as a youth group leader at Queen of Angels Catholic Church; also, through the church’s organizations, she has provided housing, clothing, food, medicine and other assistance to the Port Angeles community.
The Clallam County Community Service Award honors the “dedication, sacrifice and accomplishments” of community leaders and volunteers “who have made a difference in Clallam County, who have made our communities a better place by doing extraordinary things for their neighbors, their community or the environment.”
This is the 28th year of the award, begun by the Peninsula Daily News and now co-sponsored with Soroptimist International of Port Angeles-Noon Club.
